The Terrible Catsafterme

SEASON 1 – CBS

Created by Don Nicholl, Michael Ross, and Bernie West. The series is a spin-off of “All in the Family,” the episode “The Jeffersons Move on Up” from January 11, 1975, serving as the series pilot. 

Theme song: “Movin’ on Up” written by Jeff Barry and Ja’net Dubois, performed by Ja’net Dubois

• 001. A Friend in Need – 1/18/1975
  • Louise Jefferson (Isabel Sanford) brings her friend Diane Stockwell (Pauline Myers) up to visit her New York high-rise apartment, but Diane is shocked to find that Louise is not actually a maid as Diane is, but rather lives in the swanky home with her husband George (Sherman Hemsley). When George comes home, he tries to convince Louise that she needs a maid, but Louise is against the idea. Consulting their upstairs neighbors Tom (Franklin Cover) and Helen Willis (Roxie Roker), a racially mixed couple and the father of George and Louise’s son Lionel’s (Mike Evans) girlfriend Jenny (Berlinda Tolbert), Louise finds that they employ a cleaning lady. George’s mother Olivia (Zara Cully) acts as if she’s against Louise having a maid, until she finds out that she is aligned with Louise, and quickly changes her mind. George takes out an ad and gets a response from a lady named Florence Johnston (Marla Gibbs), and despite the fact that Louise tries to prove she doesn’t need her, she takes a liking to her and her acerbic wit against George and agrees to hire her. Diane finds out and is offended that she wasn’t hired on full-time and then reveals that she is the one working part-time as the Willis’ maid. Paul Benedict is the Jeffersons’ English neighbor Harry Bentley, who often relies on George walking on his back to crack it. 3/28/17

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SEASON 1 – NBC

Created by Reinhold Weege

Theme music composed by Jack Elliott, performed by Ernie Watts on saxophone

• 001. All You Need Is Love – 1/4/1984
  • At Criminal Court Part 2 in Manhattan, New York, the court clerk Lana Wagner (Karen Austin) anxiously awaits the arrival of a new night court judge. Sharing in her anticipation are public defender Sheila Gardner (Gail Strickland), prosecutor Dan Fielding (John Larroquette), and bailiffs Bull Shannon (Richard Moll) and Selma Hacker (Selma Diamond). When 34-year old Harry T. Stone (Harry Anderson) arrives, no one recognizes him as the judge until he reveals himself amidst his unorthodox humor and antics. His first case is cut and dry as he quickly fines his his old friend Leonard ‘Hacksaw’ Hammond (Andrew Bloch) for playing Three Card Monte. His second case involves a married couple Phil (Joseph V. Perry) and Louise Kerr (Peggy McCay), whose fight over Phil’s tryst with hooker Carla Bouvoir (Rita Taggart) led to Louse firing a gun, which gets her charged with attempted murder. Harry insists that the couple go have coffee together with their lawyers and work it out. Dan and Shelia return with clothes torn after the melee that ensued. Lana starts to believe that she can’t work with Harry, especially when he uses a two-headed coin to presumably determine their fate. But when the chips are down, Phil doesn’t want to see Louise go to jail, so the couple make up. Harry earns the respect of his peers. He also admits that he got his job when the Mayor, on his last day in office, goes down a long list of prospective candidates for the job, and although he was last on the list, he was the only one home to take the call…and the job. Luke Andreas is the painter. Matt Landis is the courier. Cal Gibson is the shouting man in the gallery. Charlotte Portney is the stenographer. Eugene “Pineapple” Jackson appears in the jury. 3/29/16 Read the rest of this entry »

SEASON 1 – NBC

Created by Gary David Goldberg

Theme music: “Without Us” (originally identified as “Us”) by Jeff Barry and Tom Scott, and sang by Dennis Tufano and Mindy Sterling (episodes 1-10), and sang by Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams (episodes 11 and beyond)

• 001. Pilot – 9/22/1982
  • Steven Keaton (Michael Gross) and his wife Elyse (Meredith Baxter-Birney) are a liberal couple who met during the Woodstock era, and now live in a suburb of Columbus, Ohio, where Steven works as station manager for the public television station Channel WKS and Elyse works as an independent architect. They have two teenage children, the ultra conservative Republican Alex (Michael J. Fox) and the ditzy but good-natured Mallory (Justine Bateman), and a nine-year old daughter Jennifer (Tina Yothers). Alex invites his latest crush, the rich airhead Kimberly Blanton (Cindy Fisher) over for dinner, which proves to be awkward since Alex is trying so hard to impress her. When Alex tells his parents he is going to meet her and her parents Preston (John Petlock) and Emily (Toni Sawyer) at the Carlton club, Steven blows his stack because the Carlton club is restricted. Alex heads off anyway, and Steven eventually gets so irritated by it that he goes to the club and demands that Alex leave. Alex is angry with his apologetic father but after they talk and hug it out, Alex understands his father’s intentions, while Steven realizes he can’t expect his son to act just like him. Meanwhile Elyse tries to design a house for the Emersons, a couple who hate each other and want to be in separate parts of the house. Maurice Marsac is Roger the waiter. 3/28/16 Read the rest of this entry »

SEASON 1

Created by Al Lewis

Theme music by Wilbur Hatch

NOTE: This show is a continuation of the radio program of the same name that aired between 1948-1957

• 001. Trying to Pick a Fight – 10/3/1952
  • Constance “Connie” Brooks (Eve Arden) is a sarcastic high school English teacher at Madison High School, where she has a budding relationship with Biology teacher Philip Boynton (Robert Rockwell), and lives in the home of her landlady Margaret Davis (Jane Morgan) on Carroll Avenue. Her principal is the blustering and irritable Osgood Conklin (Gale Gordon), whose daughter Harriet (Gloria McMillan) attends the high school. Harriet’s boyfriend is squeaky-voiced Walter Denton (Richard Crenna), who also proclaims that Miss Brooks is his favorite teacher is Miss Brooks and often gives her rides to school in his topless jalopy. Walter tells Miss Brooks that he has picked a fight with Harriet because it always leads to an amorous make-up. Connie decides to try this herself with Philip but she can’t seem to make him angry. She then mentions this to Mr. Conklin, who tries it with his own wife Martha (Paula Winslowe). It seems to work too well when his housekeeper reports that she has left with her valise. He assumes that she is going to her mother’s house in Montrose, so he heads to the train station. When Martha calls the school, Connie explains the idea she put into his head and advises her to let his heels cool at the train station. Philip overhears this and becomes genuinely irritated with Connie. Martha invites Connie over to wait for Mr. Conklin’s return, but she begins to panic when he is out late, having borrowed Walter’s jalopy. Walter reports the car stolen to get the police to look for him, and eventually finds out that Conklin has gone all the way to Montrose. He is brought back by a police officer (Edwin Max) soaking wet from the rain. Conklin and his wife make up, Walter and Harriet make up, but when Connie thinks she is going to get a kiss from Philip, he merely feeds her a jellybean. Later Walter is arrested for driving his own ‘stolen’ car. NOTE: This episode was later broadcast as a rerun as a flashback episode with new footage in which Connie tells Mrs. Davis about her dream that relates to this episode. 3/28/16

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SEASON 1

Created by Mark Roberts

Opening theme: “I See Love” written by Keb’ Mo’ and Josh Kelley, performed by Keb’ Mo’

• 001. Pilot – 9/20/2010
  • Mike Biggs is a single lonely overweight Chicago police officer, who frequently hangs out at Abe’s diner with his partner Officer Carl McMillan (Reno Wilson), and Molly Flynn (Melissa McCarthy) is a single overweight fourth grade schoolteacher living with her wine-chugging mother Joyce (Swoozie Kurtz) and pot-smoking irresponsible sister Victoria (Katy Mixon). Both Molly and Mike separately attend an Overeaters Anonymous meeting and take a liking to one another. Molly invites Mike to come speak to her class, and after doing so, she gets distracted by the kids before he can ask her out again. He almost gets another chance at the next meeting, but when he falls over a table and dislocates his finger, the chance is ruined again. When he and Carl respond to a burglary call at Molly’s house, he finally gets to ask her for a date and she accepts. Nyambi Nyambi is Babatunde “Samuel”, the sarcastic waiter at Abe’s. Tucker Albrizzi is Tucker. Brendan Patrick Connor is the group leader George. Kiara Muhammad is Crystal. John O’Brien is the waiter. 3/27/17

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